By Ray King
A traffic stop by Pine Bluff Police on a vehicle that ran a stop light on Harding Avenue and 38th Avenue Monday resulted in the arrest of a man on drug and weapons related charges.
Freddie Hughey, 66, was taken into custody after Lt. Ralph Issac, who conducted a traffic stop on the parking lot of McDonald’s.
When Hughey opened the door of the vehicle he was driving, a bag containing a white powder substance fell out. When Issac asked Hughey if there was a weapon in the vehicle, Hughey said yes and was placed in handcuffs and put in a police car.
Vice and Narcotics Detective Jeremy Crosby reported that Issac saw a handgun in plain view on the passenger seat of the vehicle. The gun had five rounds in the magazine and one in the chamber. Another officer who was at the scene said there had been a previous call that a male was on Auto Drive waiving a gun around.
The white powder tested positive for crack cocaine and weighed 2.5 grams. There were two smoking pipes also found in the vehicle. The suspected drugs will be sent to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for analysis.
On Tuesday, Pine Bluff District Judge John Kearney set a $10,000 bond for Hughey after ruling prosecutors have probable cause to charge him with possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms.
The Public Defender’s Office was appointed to represent Hughey.
